To de-badge, or to badge, that is the question??

[Space Cadet]

I’ve always been a fan of de-badging cars, i.e. leaving the make but taking away the model and engine size etc, did it on my previous Golf GTI’s my 350z and am now considering it on my A3.

I have a black 3.2 quattro S-Line, so on the back apart from the Audi rings (which I’ll keep) there is an ‘A3’ badge on the left and ‘3.2’ & ‘quattro’ badges on the right. I just can’t decide whether to take these off??

On one hand, it’ll look a lot cooler and less fussy, but on the other it’ll just look like any other model because they pretty much all have the twin exhaust pipes on the left.

Can’t say I’ve ever seen another 3.2 quattro on the road, but I see loads of other models.

An S3 looks like an S3 whether it has the badges on or not, as do S4’s RS4’s etc etc, but I wonder if it’ll loose its status (if that’s the correct word) if I take the badges off.

(Would leave the Quattro badge on the front and the S-Line badges on the sides)

Any views???

[engineermk]

I was going to order my A3 2.0T quattro "de-badged" but Audi have taken that option off the list so mine arrived badged up. I decided to keep the badges, the few de-badged cars i have seen look naked!

[bora(ing) nick]

keep 'em on

Otherwise people will think your driving round in a 1.6....

(not that theres anything wrong with the 1.6's!!!)

[Space Cadet]

It’s really easy to take the badges off if you so wish.

Not sure about them looking naked, I think they actually look sleeker, why actually do we need to have the size of the engine or the trim level on our cars. I think the back of the A3 looks a bit fussy and de-badging it would smooth it out - I just have a conundrum because apart from the badges there is nothing to differentiate it from a 1.1L granny model. I really can’t make up my mind.

Nick – yes hear what you are saying, that’s the issue isn’t it, but then again its got the s-line fat wheels with massive brakes showing through and the s-line badges etc so it will be clear that it’s not a 1.6 (again like you said, nothing wrong with that itself).

All the big exec-barges floating around the city where I work are de-badged, they all look smarter for it.

[prolfe]

It’s really easy to take the badges off if you so wish.

Not sure about them looking naked, I think they actually look sleeker, why actually do we need to have the size of the engine or the trim level on our cars. I think the back of the A3 looks a bit fussy and de-badging it would smooth it out - I just have a conundrum because apart from the badges there is nothing to differentiate it from a 1.1L granny model. I really can’t make up my mind.

Nick – yes hear what you are saying, that’s the issue isn’t it, but then again its got the s-line fat wheels with massive brakes showing through and the s-line badges etc so it will be clear that it’s not a 1.6 (again like you said, nothing wrong with that itself).

All the big exec-barges floating around the city where I work are de-badged, they all look smarter for it.

If you have the 3.2 Quattro, then you should have twin chrome exhausts, which only the 2.0TFSI, 1.8TFSI, 2.0TDI 170 and 3.2 have.

All of which are very quick A3's

The 1.6 I think has a chrome exhaust as well, but a single not a double.
The 1.9 and 2.0 tdi 140 have twin steel turned down exhusts.

I de-badged mine almost on day one because it was no longer an option. It looks very unfussy and i pleased I did it.

Have a look:

http://www.vwaudiforum.co.uk/photopo...to=262&cat=529
and:
http://www.vwaudiforum.co.uk/photopo...ze=big&cat=529

[Space Cadet]

Thanks for the pictures, your car looks really smart without the badges – and very clean!!!!!

I’m going to have a really good think about it tonight, am swaying towards taking them off, I suppose I could always put them/some new ones back on if I later change my mind.

[Eshrules]

different car - same idea. my golf has the gt tdi badges on and i am sick to death of wannabe boy racers thinking they have to race me everywhere i go... the badges will be coming off next weekend when i clean it

id say take them off....

never heard of a "1.1 granny model" A3 anyway?

[prolfe]

To get my badges off:

I placed a piece of cardboard, like an old business card at the opposite end of the badge that i was removing, and at the other end i used a knife to prise it off.

That way when you lift it off the badge does not cut into the paintwork.

They came off really easily.

And as you said, you could always get some more if you want them back on.

People who think they could race you might think twice because they would be unsure what model your car is. And the ones that think they will because they assume it's a granny 1.1 will be blown away. Win-win situation.

Oh and without badges it's easier to clean.

[prolfe]

Those models in question are:

Model 0-60 top speed
3.2 Quattro 6.5 155
2.0 TFSI 7.1 146
1.8 TFSI 8.2 137
2.0 TDI 170 8.2 138

And the three turbo'd cars you wouldn't want to mess around with once they got going.

[Space Cadet]

As always there have been differences in opinions, some say to de-badge and some say to badge. I’m just torn between the two.


(As for 0-60’s the 3.2 has been tested by many at high 5’s, coming from my old 350z which was mid 5’s the A3 actually feels faster up to a point so can believe this. Have had it re-mapped and a Pipercross filter put in, should be around 280bhp which would obviously help a bit with the acceleration.)